Luo Binhan needed some time to calm down from the grief caused by learning that his friend had betrayed him. He asked to walk around the room, and Chen Wei also took the opportunity to consider whether to help him - in fact, Luo Binhan himself had not thought about it. Although he didn't want Yu Xiaorong to be involved in the cosmic melee between wizards and aliens, it didn't seem entirely reasonable to give her a forgetting spell for this purpose. They don't respect individual wishes very much, which is a minor issue (after all, they are not the kind of brother and sister who don't make mistakes with each other). It may cause Yu Xiaorong to suffer from mental illness at a critical moment, which is the most frightening thing. Yu Xiaorong is very good at digging out catastrophic disasters from small troubles.
"I know, I know." Luo Binhan said while flipping through the books on the bed. "The steps you take to hypnotize a person definitely don't include putting a head on her head. But it's still quite scary to me. Do you understand? It's like my sister. The head has been moved, and it is no longer the original... The original is a very important indicator for us. I mean naturally. Accessories that are added later are always prone to problems. "
He didn't really know what he was saying because he was busy flipping through the book "The One Hundred Most Bizarre Occurrences in the World". The book was very thick, and the paper quality was terrible. It reminded Luo Binhan of the colorful pamphlets he could buy on the train when he was a child, which were full of ridiculous stories. There were also pirated books that you could buy on the roadside in the past, and even the names of the main characters were printed wrong. Luo Binhan didn't know where Chen Wei found such a book, or whether it was Chen Wei's book, but he had become obsessed with the mysterious and nonsense tone of this book. While he was talking to Chen Wei, his eyes quickly glanced at the "Tennessee Witch Murder Case".
"Odd-looking dog," he muttered absently.
Chen Wei asked from behind him: "Do you mean 0312?"
"No, I'm reading this." Luo Binhan shook the book toward her, "Are these yours?"
"No. Everything in this room belongs to the owner of this place."
"So, you're not the owner? But Falk said you live here."
"It's just a temporary stay."
This is actually in line with Luo Binhan's guess. But that made him even more curious about who took Chen Wei in.
"Who is the shopkeeper? Is it among those two people outside?"
Chen Wei's wine glass was empty at some point. But her appearance didn't seem to change, and she still asked with that scary smile: "Which one do you think it will be?"
"I guess it's the foreign man." Luo Binhan said, "The girl at the door is not very familiar with you."
But he soon realized that there was a slight flaw in this guess: Foreigners may not speak English, but if they want to learn English, there is no need to buy a "Certificate 4 English Vocabulary Encyclopedia" with a Chinese cover. The books scattered on the bed seemed to be all in Chinese. He glanced there again and recognized a color comic "Father and Son" with pinyin, several books teaching people how to make drinks and baked goods, and a book called "Qiu" with a scary cover. A half-pack of shelled walnuts, and a tongs doll that should be used to open the walnuts.
The characters on all the objects are in Chinese, but it's hard to say there is any clear age or gender indication. If a foreigner lives here long enough, he can decorate his room like this.
Luo Binhan's thoughts temporarily slipped away from the "Tennessee Witch Murders". He stared at the pile of things on the bed and felt that there was something special about it. The nutcracker in the shape of a puppet looked a little out of place in the room. It is too exquisite, it is a pirate doll with a blue dress, red buttons and a white beard, and it is even painted with gold.
He didn't remember seeing such things in residents' supermarkets in Lihai City in the past. It was more like small souvenirs that would be placed in tourist shops. There are several similar ornaments in Yu Xiaorong's home, some are small gifts that come with Christmas shopping, and there is one made by Malcolm himself, which looks like a miniature version of Yu Xiaorong. It is said that this is a traditional handicraft there, and it can also protect the safety of the family - the latter sentence is probably just used by Malcolm to comfort the children. He couldn't think of any reason why a nut-chopping tong should keep the house safe.
Chen Wei didn't object, so he picked up the nutcracker from the bed. Through the sharp-pointed teeth of the doll, he could indeed see faintly two pieces of metal inside. There is also a handle on the back of the doll, which is used to control the opening and closing of the mouth parts and to destroy some miniature universes hidden in nut shells.
He grabbed the handle and shook it twice, pretending that the doll was talking to him. Using this thing to crack nuts is really an unnecessary waste, unless it used to be the owner's biggest enemy in his life and was cursed to become the gorgeous and exquisite nutcracker it is today. No one can guarantee that such a thing does not exist, after all, he still has a cursed stuffed pigeon hanging in his bedroom on the Silence.
Luo Binhan slowly put the nutcracker back on the bed with a hint of respect. Now he began to think that it was not impossible for the red-haired stranger to rule the store. Maybe he really came from outer space with a nutcracker made from the corpse of his mortal enemy. The first step is to conquer "Guns N' Roses", and the second step is to consider conquering the entire world. Learning CET-4 English is just a small phased task in this grand undertaking.
"Actually, I don't know the two people outside." Chen Wei said, "But the red-haired man has been here these two days. I think he is a regular visitor here."
Luo Binhan expressed great disappointment.
"You mean the owner isn't here?"
"I think he went out. This happens all the time."
"He's not thinking about making money, is he? If I grab a few bottles from the cabinet when I leave, he won't care at all."
"That's not okay. If you steal in front of me, I have the responsibility to stop it."
Luo Binhan glanced at the shallow layer of wine bottles on the table, weighing whether some inappropriate remarks would lead to retaliation. In the end, he decided not to say anything, because Chen Wei was obviously a frequent visitor here. To this shop owner who has no desire for money, Chen Wei is either a friend who is close enough to eat, drink and live for free, or a bully who falls from the sky and cannot be driven out.
He couldn't tell which kind Chen Wei would be. She has been very polite since he first met her (especially compared to Jing Huang). She is engaged in (according to Momolo) a very noble job. She has defeated countless evils and saved countless lives, so she can be appreciated by Upsilon. This is stronger than any visual evidence. But there was always something wrong with her, like seeing a rabbit with deer antlers.
Unconsciously, he started staring into Chen Wei's eyes again. At the same time, Chen Wei was also looking at him behind the table. The dim light made her not even look like a living person, but an exquisite statue made of white marble. The shadows on her face seemed to have been deliberately applied, forming a very unique expression on her face. In an instant, Luo Binhan felt familiar. He had seen this expression before, but not on Zhou Yu's face, but when he was closer. Not long ago, didn't Yaleriga look at him with a similar expression? Like she felt sorry for him. As for Chen Wei, perhaps because she lacks a pair of eyes that express emotions, she appears more distant and objective. She was like a spectator witnessing a tragic performance.
Luo Binhan made a few vague murmurs at this idea. Even he didn't know what he was complaining about, so no wonder Chen Wei asked him to say it again in confusion.
"Your eyes," Luo Binhan said, "just... do you know your eyes are special?"
It was only after he said it that he realized how stupid and awkward it was, but that was exactly what he was thinking about. And Chen Wei seemed to already know how he felt. She smiled as if she was used to it.
"The eyes... or vision, to me, are a bit like birthmarks. Do you have that kind of legend, right? Birthmarks are marks that are related to past lives."
"And this is true? Including a mole on my belly? I always thought it looked a bit like a gecko."
"Those are two different things, Luo Binhan. Generally speaking, the waves in the trap zone are not enough to produce obvious laws. For you, it should be more advantageous not to take things that cannot be proved too seriously."
Luo Binhan could only express his great regret. He originally believed that the mole on his stomach slowly came from near his buttocks. Chen Wei briefly glanced at Luo Binhan's belly with her "past life token" and rejected his theory with great conviction.
"Why can't you see through your eyes?" Luo Binhan asked a little unconvinced.
"If you have to say it that way, it's okay, but it's not the kind of perspective you think. What I can see is a more conceptual thing. To describe it using your words here, it should be..."
"Tao?" Luo Binhan said.
"It's 'Dharma'."
Luo Binhan shrugged his shoulders, only a flat and shiny scalp came to mind. He complimented knowingly but not sincerely: "That goes well with your nickname."
"That's also two different things, Luo Binhan. The title 'Fa Jian' actually does not belong to me, but is a technique used by my master in the past. Because he no longer uses it, and I am also the only successor of this technique, so That’s how I used it as my nickname.”
"I understand." Luo Binhan said. But he also admits that he may not fully understand.
"Jing Huang and I come from the same country. You should know this, right? If you don't consider the faction issue, we can be considered the same sect. But let me explain in advance that except for the master's sword technique, I have not learned any other techniques. Fa, and I am not officially recorded as a disciple within the sect. So I cannot be considered a member of the Mountain People."
"But why don't you learn?"
"Because I was rejected by Chi County - it was not that the people in the mountains rejected me, but that the country itself did not accept me."
"You mean, land?"
"That's right to understand. That's the thing. Just like other ancient laws that cannot easily leave their homeland, I am just the opposite, trying to avoid returning to my homeland."
"Is that bad for you? I mean, besides the fact that you're not from the mountains, is there any other trouble?"
Chen Wei did not answer, but there was obvious distress on her face. So Luo Binhan knew the answer that she didn't want to elaborate on, and somehow, that suddenly made him interested in this matter.
"Why are you so special?" He nodded his eyelids, "Is this related to your previous life?"
"Exactly."
Luo Binhan speculated: "Were you a bad person in your previous life?"
"If all bad guys were rejected by the land, there would be a lot more ancient laws that could operate outside."
Luo Binhan rubbed his eyes twice. He felt that the subtle sarcasm in Chen Wei's words was very familiar. But as she sighed in annoyance, that illusion disappeared. Zhou Yu's unhappiness was always dark and cryptic, but Chen Wei didn't seem to intend to hide her emotions. Her distress was as candid as her usual posture.
"Although there is no need to hide these things from you, it would be too long to start from the beginning. To put it simply, Chixian did not accept me because it would cause danger. Although after reincarnation, the nature of my personality has changed, But in the eyes of the land, it is still the same thing, because what really matters is the associated concept. To put it metaphorically, different personalities are like packaging boxes with different decorations, and concepts are the ingredients wrapped inside... Put it this way Can you understand?"
Luo Binhan decided to express his true thoughts frankly this time. He shook his head blankly but firmly, while not forgetting to express his sincere praise.
"Your metaphor is very flattering." He praised, trying to add a positive and friendly atmosphere.
Chen Wei didn't care at all about his futile efforts. She hesitated for a while, obviously wanting to say something, but in the end she just shook her head.
"Have you given up on me?" Luo Binhan asked regretfully.
"You are indeed what Zhou Yu said, with a very strange personality. But that's not the case. I was just thinking about how I should explain it to you... There used to be a person with a bad personality who made up a story about my life experience. story, and told Zhou Yu that story.”
Luo Binhan said without hesitation: "Then I want to listen too."
"No. That story... I always feel like I'm causing trouble by making it up like that."
"Tell it and let me judge?" Luo Binhan suggested hopefully.
However, Chen Wei just smiled and shook her head. She obviously planned to keep this troublesome story to the end, but Luo Binhan was not particularly disappointed, because as long as the second person knew the secret, it would never become a secret again. When he goes back tonight, he will knock on Zhou Yu's door to listen to the story.
"Let me tell you a story I know." Chen Wei finally said, "Once upon a time, there was an invisible but powerful spirit. It was born from the consciousness of countless dead people, so it did not have its own consciousness or name. Until one day, it was noticed by a witch who was proficient in magic and shaped a body for it. Since then, the spirit has lived in human form and imitated human behavior. Perhaps because it is not real People, so they always want to be perfect in what they imitate. It... wants to be a perfect person."
"Perfect?"
"I can't think of a more appropriate word at the moment. To be more specific, I want to become a 'person who meets human standards': see from a human perspective, act with human means, and judge with human morality. What is finally achieved is also human achievement. Although all this is meaningless to the spirits, in terms of 'acting as a human being', success must be universally recognized by humans. Use human methods to become a recognized person. . In layman’s terms, it means becoming recognized by the world without using the power of spirits..."
"Hero." Luo Binhan said in a strange tone.
"But it failed in the end."
"Humph."
The room was silent. The pirate-skinned nutcracker looked at Luo Binhan with its sinisterly protruding black round eyes that looked like some kind of reptile. Its mouth was half open, laughing quietly.
"As for the main reason for the failure, I can't say for sure. The spirit did not get a very suitable body, or in other words, there was no suitable body for it in the world, so it is actually difficult to act like ordinary people. Except In addition, there may have been various other obstacles, and the final result was not satisfactory.”
"Failure is the mother of success." Luo Binhan said carelessly.
"After realizing that he could not fulfill his wish, the spirit completely gave up his earthly life and lived alone in the mountains. Until one day, another dangerous spirit appeared in the world. This one later went from being numerous to being silent. Appearing among static things, and having obtained a body made of solid stone a long time ago, it is much easier to move than the first spirit. This spirit with a stone body does not want to take care of people. Instead, he created many stone-bodied beings and regarded them as his kindred and servants. These stone-bodied creatures lived a long life and were tireless, bringing great disasters to the mortals in the world. When the people in the mountains heard about this, they tried to find ways to control it, and the spirits living in seclusion in the mountains also decided to help."
"Traitor!" Luo Binhan condemned.
"...Although there were many twists and turns in the process, the stone monster was finally defeated by the people in the mountains. Originally, the people in the mountains planned to destroy its body and turn it into an invisible spirit again, capable of causing The disaster will be reduced a lot. But when the hermit sees the stone body, perhaps out of sympathy, he is unwilling to banish it back to the nameless spirit. So it tries to transform the stone body at any cost. into another form. I thought that at first I just wanted to look like an adult, but maybe the regret of not being able to achieve my wish was too strong, and it began to unconsciously shape an ideal image: a body that would not decay due to fragility, a temperament It will not be distorted by its essence, and its personality will not be wiped out by strength. In addition, it must act with human skill and human morality. In order to create such a form from the body of the old monster, it exhausted All the power it had. And in the last step, in order to stabilize the molded body, it entrusted this matter to the people in the mountains, and returned to its seclusion, vowing never to see its creation again. Why do you have to do this? It is probably caused by the desire for perfection. It seems that imperfect creators will also destroy the work itself, and the best way is to have no connection between the two... No matter how many times Every time I think about this, I still find it incomprehensible.”
"I understand." Luo Binhan said sadly, "I have read some revised versions."
There was the sound of broken cups and bowls falling to the ground outside the door.
